The invention relates to a column for carrying out an isotope exchange between a liquid substance and a gaseous substance using a catalytic reaction. It also relates to uses of the column.
A method is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,143,123 by means of which an exchange of hydrogen isotopes can be carried out, namely between liquid water H2O and hydrogen gas H2, in which the hydrogen H (“protium”) is partly substituted by deuterium D or tritium T. In this method a central role is played by a reversible reaction in which an isotope which is bound in a hydrogen molecule is catalytically substituted by a hydrogen isotope of a water molecule. This reaction is sufficiently efficient only when the catalytically active material is dry, i.e. remains unwetted by liquid water. A catalytically active material has therefore been developed which is coated with a semi-permeable film which is hydrophobic and hence water repellent on the one hand but which is however permeable for free water molecules from an environment which is formed by water vapor or a moist gas on the other hand.